The G-G should gallop off
There's much wailing at the moment over whether the Australian Governor-General should stay or go, in light of the criticism levelled at home concerning his handling of allegations of abuse of children within the Anglican Church. It seems pretty clear to me that he should step down, or failing that, PM Howard should ask him to resign. While the criticism of him has no direct bearing on his current position, the office of Governor-General should be above any hint of controversy. While the role is largely ceremonial, it does hold real power (as Gough Whitlam would attest). The Governor-General needs to be trusted to wield that power if and when it is appropriate. Anything that weakens the authority of that position undermines the integrity of our constitution. If for some reason there was just cause for our Prime Minister to be sacked, how can that happen if the Governor-General only remains in that position because the PM has allowed him to remain there? We can't afford to have a lame duck G-G. As I think our current PM is the worst thing to happen to Australia in many years (and his actions will probably have an impact for years to come), I'd like to think if he goes too far that the G-G will retain some ability to act.
Posted by david at May 7, 2003 6:28 PM